Obsessive
by delicate.desires
Summary: It's a similar jutsu to the one I usually use. You know, the one where my skin changes color and I look totally bad ass? You must've heard about it before. It's like that, except you only feel the pain. Hidan x Sakura twoshot.
1. Bakit

Disclaimer: All characters in Naruto belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

Title: Obsessive  
Summary: "It's a similar jutsu to the one I usually use. You know, the one where my skin changes color and I look totally _bad ass_? You must've heard about it before. It's like that, except you only feel the _pain_." Hidan x Sakura twoshot.  
Time-Period: Not really sure. I'm not caught up with the manga, and a lot of characters and things have already been killed of... Well, I'm sure it will be easy to figure out. Time-period isn't that big of a deal here, anyways.

For: SpeedDemon315's contest.  
Pairing: Hidan x Sakura  
Theme: Ardor - intense devotion, eagerness, or enthusiasm; zeal

I had made an entry for Vesper chan's contest, with the pairing AkatSaku, but a couple of reviewers had asked why Hidan wasn't in it. In all honesty, I just forgot about him. To make up for it, I figured he could have his own fic. (;

I hope anybody who actually reads this enjoys the story!

* * *

He was presumed dead yet here he was, gracing her with his presence.

Dumbfounded, Sakura analyzed the young man before her. She glanced back down at her worn out, outdated bingo book and matched the description. Everything, from his necklace, to the intimidating three bladed scythe he was carrying, was described in the book. His white hair was slicked back, and once he noticed her gawking, his violet eyes narrowed dangerously at her.

"What the fuck are you staring at, bitch?"

Instantaneously, Sakura was flush against him with her kunai held right up against his jugular, ready to plunge the weapon deep within his neck at any second.

"Go ahead. Do it, I fucking dare you."

At first, Sakura had doubts that this man, who she never personally met, was Hidan. He fit the description in the bingo books perfectly, except there were two problems. The minor issue was that he wasn't wearing the Akatsuki cloak, something she assumed was mandatory for all members, considering she had never seen any Akatsuki without it. The major problem, however, was that this man was supposed to be _dead_.

Well, buried beneath rubble in the Nara forest.

At the gruesome thought, Sakura grimaced. How had he escaped, let alone survive? He must have been suffocated from being underneath tons of dirt and rocks.

"What are you doing on Fire Nation territory, Akatsuki?" She demanded, attempting to sound as threatening as possible. Inwardly, she was recalling what had occurred the day when Hidan here was supposedly killed. The bingo book she owned was an old copy she had managed to find at the bottom of her pack, and it didn't say much except for his appearance.

"_Akatsuki_? Fuck that. I haven't been part of that bullshit organization for years, you dumb bitch. Now, piss off before I..." He trailed off, eying Sakura's form. With a lick of his lips, he continued, "Hey, you know what? You'd make a fucking great _sacrifice_. I haven't been able to find anybody worthy for a while, now."

Sakura's eyes widened as his statement triggered recollection of information Shikamaru and Tsunade had told her. He had been a Jashinist, and even worse-_ immortal_. She promptly jumped back, barely missing the swipe aimed directly for her neck. She couldn't, at all costs, allow him to possess any of her blood. If that were to happen, she would die an agonizingly slow, and not to mention _painful_ death, which was something she definitely wanted to avoid if possible.

"You're a fast one." Hidan grinned in an almost predatory fashion. Sakura considered fleeing, seeing as how he would have a hard time catching up to him with a huge scythe to carry, but even with the large weapon, he was unusually fast. With that out of the question, Sakura readied herself for the next attack he would throw, despite how hopeless her efforts seemed at the moment.

"_Shit_." Sakura cursed, a bad habit she picked up from having spent too much time with Naruto. Sure, she may have been able to defeat an Akatsuki member once, but she had received help from elder Chiyo, who actually knew how to handle the opponent at the time. She had grown stronger since then, training with various people so that she could become a more well-rounded nin. She couldn't _always_ rely on her massive strength, or medical jutsu, which had been taught to her from Tsunade.

"Whoa, whoa! Such crude language coming from a prissy little thing." Hidan mocked, running towards her with his arm raised. Sakura dodged the next swipes made at her, making hand signs for an earth-based attack. Large walls of rock surrounded Hidan before she used a water jutsu to cause the towers to collapse on him. He would be very pissed off with her, having being buried _twice_, now.

Sakura sighed, knowing it would take him at least twenty minutes to get out of the rubble. It was just enough time to escape and find the nearest village. She needed to get in contact with Konoha as soon as possible. Urgently, she started running in the direction of the last village she had been to, enhancing her legs with minuscule amounts of chakra in order to speed up.

Her heart raced as she ran through the tree tops- this man was _dangerous_. He was an S-Class criminal whose abilities made it so he could easily defeat her, considering her strongest fighting techniques were close-range and of healing. Even if she could heal her wounds, she would only be subject to more with that strange jutsu he used. And because she couldn't possibly risk being too close, her chakra-filled punches won't affect him at all if she couldn't get near enough to hit him in the first place.

She may be the head of the hospital, and nearly at an ANBU rank, but even that wasn't enough for someone like Hidan. She frowned, disappointed. Hours of training with her friends, focusing on fighting techniques varying from taijutsu, weaponry, genjutsu, and to elemental ninjutsu- all of it would be wasted if she got herself killed now. She clenched her teeth at the thought, and feelings of determination grew.

Death was not an option.

She would make use of her training if she was forced to oppose against him once again. She had decent skill in all areas, however her main style of fighting had stuck with her since the beginning of her apprenticeship with Tsunade. It was ingrained into her head, a reflex action to an extent. If she had been ambushed, the first thing she would do would be to summon chakra into her fist and smash either the ground or her pursuer.

Suddenly Sakura found herself against a tree, immobilized by a hand wrapped tightly around her throat. She swore at herself mentally, berating herself on how much of an idiot she was for being so distracted. She should have been paying more attention.

"Hello kunoichi. Where are you going in such a hurry?" The man exclaimed, bringing his face closer to inspect Sakura, who merely twitched in irritation. "... What's this? A leaf headband? You know, girlie, one of my comrades were killed by a leaf nin."

When he moved to punch her, Sakura caught his fist, squeezing until she heard his bones crack. The man cried out in agony, and with his uninjured arm, threw another punch at Sakura, who only kicked him off the tree branch they were standing on. He crumbled to the ground, writhing in pain.

"Pathetic." Sakura muttered as she rubbed her sore throat, but before she could leave the area, at least fifteen more men appeared. Judging by the glares she was receiving, they were all associated with the man she had just defeated. She swore once again, this time out of impatience. She needed to reach her destination but these amateur rogue-nin were getting in her way.

"I don't have time for this." She murmured, creating two shadow clones- a technique taught by Naruto- and prepared to attack. The men surrounding her laughed, confident they would win the battle. In an instant, five nin who had started to approach her were lying on the ground, unconscious.

Infuriated, a few men standing along treetops sent various weapons raining down upon Sakura, who dodged each kunai and shuriken thrown at her. During her movements, she managed to knock out a couple more nin. She furrowed her eyebrows in concentration. In all honesty, it was more difficult trying to spare their lives by surging chakra through certain pressure points than to maim or kill them. There was no real need to hurt these men and give them permanent injuries, she just needed to ensure that they would stop following her.

She had thought of the possibilities. Leaving an extra shadow clone would suffice for possibly an hour or so, but they would eventually find her trail once again. Casting a genjutsu would use too much chakra, and running off to set up traps was much too time-consuming.

"Dammit." One of the men cursed. She glanced at her surroundings, noting that there were only about ten men left. Her clone headed for the men on the treetops, while she knocked out the ones on the ground. Inwardly, she was extremely glad she had decided to further her knowledge of chakra points by going to Hinata and Neji, both experts in chakra flow due to their Byakugan. Knocking somebody out with literally just a tap came in handy when she was in a rush.

As she cleaned up the area, she suddenly found herself immobile once again, except with a three bladed scythe quite close against her neck. Once again, she had been inattentive, and now she had to deal with the consequences, as unfortunate as they may have been.

"Guess who's back, bitch?"

Dread washed over her, but she refused to show even a minuscule amount of fear.

"_Akatsuki_." Sakura hissed, showing her displeasure at having to see him again so soon. How had he dug his way out so fast? The towers she had created were gigantic!

"For a jounin level kunoichi who beat an entire group of jounin level rogue-nin like it was nothing, you're pretty fucking stupid." He jeered. With a roll of his eyes, he decided to repeat his earlier statement, "I told you before, I'm not associated with those fuckers anymore."

"Yeah right." Sakura replied. Despite her complete stillness and confident voice, she wanted nothing more than to just _run_. Holding her captive at the moment was a man notorious for brutally and unmercifully torturing Asuma-sensei to death. Konoha nin may be known for their strength, and their will of fire, but Sakura wasn't stupid, she knew when it was time to retreat.

"No, seriously. I've devoted myself completely to Jashin. You will, too, you know." Hidan declared. Before Sakura could question him, he continued, "After the tower collapsed on me- that fucking_ hurt_, by the way- Jashin gave me a revelation. He wants you to be a loyal disciple, like me."

Sakura stared up at him with disbelief written across her face.

"So that's what you're here for? To convert me into your religion?" Sakura asked, skeptically. Sneering, she added, "If that's the case, why is it that you have your scythe pressed against my throat?"

"Are you fucking stupid? Now that Jashin has called on me to convert you, I can't kill you unless I want to be damned into an eternity of hell." He answered, as if it was the most obvious thing. "It was the only goddamn way I could get you to stay still and fucking listen to me. All you Konoha fucks are so damn stubborn."

"Prove it." Sakura demanded, still wary of him. With this, Hidan removed the scythe from its imposing position and threw it at her. Despite her fast reflexes, Sakura caught the weapon clumsily, stumbling back a couple feet before fully coming to her senses. She fought the urge to gawk at him and instead muttered, "This doesn't mean anything."

"What more do you want, you greedy bitch?" Hidan demanded, arms crossed in front of his chest.

With Hidan's weapon in her palm, Sakura decided it couldn't hurt to test her luck a little further with a simple request, "I'd like it if you'd leave me alone."

"Fuck you. I know exactly what you're trying to do." He growled, stepping towards Sakura. Swallowing nervously, Sakura stood her ground, refusing the urge to take a step back to further the distance between her and the highly intimidating man. "I'm going to be following you until you convert."

"What?!" Sakura sputtered, incredulously. Then, with a more smug tone, exclaimed, "You won't last a second in Konoha."

"I'm fucking _immortal_, remember? _Jashin_!" He exclaimed, exasperatedly. "Do I have to repeat every damn thing I say?"

"If you're trying to persuade me into joining your religion, you're doing a terrible job. Insulting me and calling me crude names aren't going to make me want to join." Sakura stated, her brows furrowed in irritation.

"Okay, _Sakura_, I am going to follow you until you start fucking worshiping_ Jashin_!" Hidan repeated, sounding determined. Sakura's eyes widened in surprise, this guy wasn't joking around. He was dead serious about converting her to Jashinism.

"Uh, no thanks. I'm going to leave. Now." Sakura said, summoning chakra into her arm. She was going to throw the scythe as far as she could, and while Hidan was busy retrieving his weapon, she would use his distraction as an escape.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk."

In an instant, Hidan was beside her, a kunai that had been hidden in his sleeves now up against her throat. Sakura swallowed nervously- he may not kill her, but apparently there was nothing wrong in _harming_ her. He dragged the weapon down the side of her throat with enough pressure to make Sakura wince with discomfort. A bead of blood dripped out on Hidan's finger, and he grinned mischievously.

Sakura lunged at him, desperately reaching out to wipe the drop of blood on his finger. Before she could reach him, however, he had already swallowed the liquid. He muttered some words and quickly made the hand signs needed for the jutsu he was executing. Once finished, he chuckled.

"Now you're bound to me." He stated, smirking. Sakura blanched. "It's a similar jutsu to the one I usually use. You know, the one where my skin changes color and I look totally _bad ass_? You must've heard about it before."

Sakura resisted the urge to roll her eyes at his gloating. Now was not the time to brag about his abilities! Impatience and frustration bubbled up inside of her.

"It's like that, except you only feel the _pain_."

"You- you- you_ bastard_!" Sakura yelled, indignantly. Her eyes clouded with fury as she quickly composed herself from the shock. "How _dare_ you?"

Hidan merely shrugged, smirking at the quaking woman before him. She was so angry that her face had become darker than her own candy colored hair. His lack of a response only enraged her further, and she childishly stomped her foot, leaving a small crater.

Determined to get a reaction out of him, Sakura threatened, "Well, I'm going contact the Hokage whether you like it or not-"

"That's fucking lovely. I don't really care what the hell you do. I'll just have you know that whatever hurts me, hurts_ you_." Hidan replied, smugly. Sakura's clouded eyes started brimming with tears, distressed by the unfortunate circumstances. Not wanting him to see her cry, Sakura briskly walked away.

"Hey, bitch! Where do you think you're going?" Hidan called out, trailing behind her. Sakura refused to acknowledge him, instead choosing to continue walking towards the closest village.

"Why are you being such a pussy about this? I'm not _that_ fucking bad." Hidan stated, swinging an arm over Sakura's shoulders. Reflexively, Sakura elbowed him in the gut, effectively knocking the breath out of both of them. Sakura quickly composed herself, disheartened that he was being truly honest, after all.

"I told you." Hidan coughed. "You're going to feel_ all_ the pain I feel."

Tears of frustration were wiped away, but Sakura remained as bitter as ever.

"Fine,_ fine_! If this is how it's going to be, you better answer my questions. _All_ of them." Sakura demanded, a venomous edge to her voice. Hidan didn't seem fazed in the slightest, and found himself smirking at the confident woman before him.

"You shouldn't be the one ordering me around, bitch. _I'm_ the one pulling the strings, here." He replied, lifting her chin up with a finger. Sakura glared defiantly at him, but made no move to remove the offending finger. "But I like your attitude. It's actually kinda fucking hot."

"Don't even think of trying anything!" Sakura warned, swatting his hand away. She turned away and advanced towards the village once again, trying desperately to hide her face, which was now red for an entirely different reason. Allowing him to see her unexpected blush was _completely_ unacceptable.

"Oh, c'mon! I know you can't resist my charms."

Sakura rolled her eyes at the arrogant comment, choosing to disregard it and instead, proceed to interrogate him. "First of all, how did you escape?"

Hidan caught up with her easily, walking alongside her instead of behind. "I had to fucking eat my way to my body. It took me fucking weeks! You don't even know how fucking hard it is to move under all that damn dirt!"

Sakura threw him a skeptical glance, wondering if he was really telling the truth. It would have been near impossible to even move under that much pressure- but then again, this guy was part of the Akatsuki. He had to be an exceptional ninja in order to be accepted into the organization. She sighed- it seemed plausible enough, if he had moved little by little, and if his body was close enough to reach. The tongue was, after all, the strongest muscle in the body.

"Okay, fine. I'll believe you. Now, what are the plans of the Akatsuki?" Sakura inquired. At the time of Hidan's defeat, the Akatsuki were still pursuing Naruto and the other demons they hadn't caught yet. During the six years that Hidan was believed to be immobile, the Akatsuki had managed to capture the rest of the demons other than Kyuubi.

However, they have remained hidden since the last capture, which was about two years ago, and were laying low, which confused Sakura greatly considering it was known fact that there was a time limit to capturing all nine demons.

"You better be fucking joking." Hidan replied, fiercely glaring at her. "This is the last time I'm going to fucking say it. I'm not part of the Akatsuki, you dumb bitch! _Shit_. Is there anything that gets through your thick fucking skull?"

Sakura rolled her eyes once again, something she seemed to do a lot more often lately. "Whatever. What are your plans after you convert me?"

"I don't know. I'm fucking immortal. I can do whatever the fuck I want." Hidan answered, and Sakura sighed. Talking to this guy was absolutely useless.

As the two continued to walk, Sakura let Hidan explain to her all the positive and negative points of following Jashin. There was lots of pain involved, and Sakura shuddered as he described, in perfect detail, the many times he had made sacrifices and rituals. However, the immortality and regeneration abilities were very appealing, especially to one whose job focused on allowing their patient to continue living for as long as possible.

"... And whatever age you converted, that's what you're going to look like for the rest of your- hey what the fuck is that?" Hidan exclaimed, pointing his scythe towards some bushes. Sakura cautiously neared the area, peeking over the bushes to see what it was. To her surprise, she found a wounded animal. More specifically, a wolf.

"Ah, shit. Look at that. It's fucking dying." Hidan pointed out. "Put it out of its misery and fucking kill it already."

"What? No! I'm going to heal it." Sakura replied, refusing his suggestion. "I'm sure it wants to live."

"Why the fuck would you do that? It's just going to get itself hurt again." Hidan countered. "You're only going to put it through more pain, you know that? I thought Konoha pussies were merciful."

"You don't know that." Sakura argued, as she slowly reached out for the animal. Scared and confused, the wolf snarled at her, snapping its jaws at her hand and giving her a nasty cut. Sakura flinched and pulled her hand back, glaring at the growling wolf. As she healed her hand, Hidan chuckled.

"I bet you're just going to get up and walk away now, you selfish bitch. It was only acting on instinct, you know. No reason to get so fucking mad."

"I know that! And I wasn't planning on leaving in the first place." Sakura snapped back, casting a non-harmful genjutsu to quickly subdue the wolf. Once it was unconscious, Sakura started healing. She couldn't help but be surprised that Hidan was even slightly understanding, and a new sense of respect for him was formed, even if it was only a little.

Once she was finished, she stepped back and released the genjutsu, causing the wolf to come back to its senses. She watched as it slowly got up, analyzing itself for the wounds that were there only a moment before. When the animal found none, it looked up at Sakura and locked eyes for a moment, as if trying to express its gratitude, before running into the forest.

"... Well, that was a big fucking waste of time." Hidan announced.

"No, it wasn't! I just helped-"

"And apparently a big fucking waste of chakra, too. You look exhausted. Way to go, dumbass, we still have a long way to go." Hidan interrupted, watching as Sakura stumbled forward before catching herself. He growled, impatiently. He was getting hungry, dammit, and the village probably was still a few hours away.

"I'm just a little dizzy from using all that chakra healing the wolf. The wound was a lot more complicated than it looked, okay? I'll be fine in a couple of minutes." Sakura countered, leaning her back on a tree.

After a moment of silence, Hidan groaned. "This is fucking stupid. Just get on my back. I'll fucking carry you to the next village as long as we don't have to stay in this shitty forest any longer than we have to."

"No." Sakura refused.

"Too bad you don't have a goddamn choice." Hidan replied, walking toward her. Sakura swung a fist at him, but Hidan easily caught it, tutting at her. "Have you forgotten already?"

Sakura stared at him in confusion, before realization struck. "_Oh_."

"You really are a dumbass." He muttered, rolling his eyes. The gesture caused her anger to flare up, but before she could snap back at him, Hidan had managed to heave her over his shoulder.

"Put me down. Now." Sakura demanded angrily, pounding his back with closed fists. In a couple of seconds, she started groaning in pain. Hidan merely laughed at her misfortune. With her back killing her, and her tiredness taking over, she decided to stop resisting his efforts.

Shyly, Sakura piped up, "Is the piggyback offer still up? Your shoulder is_ really_ uncomfortable."

"Yeah, fine." Hidan grunted, letting her down. He allowed her to climb onto his back. "My shoulder would've started hurting with such a heavy weight, anyways."

"Shut up." Sakura muttered, placing her head on his shoulder and letting her arms droop in front of his chest before allowing her exhaustion to take over.

A minuscule smile found its way on Hidan's once scowling face as she fell soundly asleep. As he started walking, he took a quick glance at her slumbering form, noting how delicate she seemed despite the massive strength he knew that she contained within that surprisingly small frame of hers.

She was unbelievably loyal to Konoha and her friends. It was only a matter of time before he would convince her to transfer that devotion to Jashin, much like himself.

The idea of having another Jashinist- and such a fine-looking one at that- for, well, _forever_, working at his side, pleased him greatly. Her explosive temper was much more interesting to deal with than traveling around by himself, anyways. Besides, her spaz attacks would never even come close to Kakuzu's. That money-hoarding fucker.

Jashin had definitely chosen well.

Hours later, Sakura awoke with an aching back. Groaning, she sat up on the bed she was currently occupying, wondering exactly how she had even got there. Her mind, still fogged from sleep, kept her from being able to organize her thoughts and memories from the last day.

"Have a nice sleep?"

Sakura jumped slightly, surprised. She immediately turned to the source of the voice, and once laying her eyes on the silver-headed man, the memories quickly came tumbling back into her head.

"Where are we?" She demanded, ignoring his earlier question.

"Relax. You don't need to be so fucking uptight." Hidan stated, earning a hard glare from Sakura. "We're in a village just a day's travel from Konoha. While you were busy with your beauty sleep- and I see it hasn't done much- I was being useful and I asked around."

Sakura, deciding it was best to ignore the jabs at her appearance, got up and headed towards the bathroom. "Whatever. I'm going to take a shower."

"... Can I join?" Hidan asked, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"What?!" She sputtered. "No!"

And with that, she slammed the door, leaving Hidan to smirk to himself. Working her up was so damn hilarious. With the smirk still plastered on his face, he planned on riling up the kunoichi more often in the future.

As Sakura took her time in the shower, Hidan bit his finger and started preparing for his painful ritual. He drew the circle on the ground, a few well-placed lines, and symbols distributed in equal lengths around the circle. Once finished, he prayed, and utilized a jutsu that caused his pale skin to change into an eerie skeleton design. Laying himself down, he reached over for one of Sakura's kunai.

As he stared at the weapon in his hand, he mentally counted to three before he took a breath and plunged the weapon deep into his stomach. As soon as his nerves reacted and the pain washed over him, a blood curdling scream was heard coming from the bathroom.

"Son of a bitch!" Hidan proclaimed as realization dawned upon him. This time it was he who had forgotten the jutsu placed on Sakura. He took the kunai out, sending another wave of pain through his body. In all honesty, it was more like a dull ache, but he wasn't sure if he had simply become accustomed to so much pain over the years, or if it was lessened from being a Jashinist. Sakura, however, was still prone to the intense, physical suffering, and he heard a strangled cry as soon as the kunai was pulled out of his system.

He quickly got up and headed to the washroom, forcing open the locked door with ease. Her silhouette behind the shower curtain was hunched over, and if the noises she was making were any sign, she was throwing up.

"Shit, Sakura, I completely-"

"What the fuck was that, Hidan?" She croaked, still shaken up from the unexpected and severe pain she had just experienced. Sure, she had gone through worse- shattered bones, ruptured veins- but they had all been expected, all been soothed instantly with healing chakra. But the sudden pain wasn't due to an injury, so chakra had no effect whatsoever.

"I was in the middle of one of my rituals." He answered, standing in front of the shower uncomfortably.

"Can't you release the jutsu first?" Sakura coughed. Hidan stood there and contemplated for a moment. So far, his current way of persuasion was not working well for him, at all. He needed her to come to Jashin willingly, so direct threats were of no use. He had tried giving her a list of pros and cons, and for a few minutes it seemed as if she was actually considering, but unfortunately for him, she refused to relent to the temptation that was eternal life and infinite healing abilities.

"No, not until you finally decide to convert." Direct threats were useless, but it couldn't hurt to shove her in the right direction.

"What?" She asked, incredulous, her voice shaky. Hidan didn't have to see her to know that her frustration and anger were starting to leak out of her eyes. "So while you're doing whatever the hell it is you do in the ritual, I'm going to be feeling every single thing?"

"Yeah." Hidan replied, shrugging. She would have to get used to the pain eventually, right? It was better for her to start early.

There was a moment of silence where Hidan was sure Sakura had lost all hope and was ready to accept her fate, but once again, she managed to surprise him.

"No. I_ refuse_. Before you start a ritual, I'm giving you some anesthetic." She exclaimed, turning off the shower before reaching out to grab a towel that hung close by. She slid the curtain to one side and stepped out, stumbling slightly. "Lots and_ lots_ of anesthetics."

"It doesn't work like that, you dumb bitch. If I stab myself with a kunai, it will feel less intense to me but you'll still feel it as if you had stabbed your own damn self." Hidan pointed out, and Sakura looked thoughtful.

"I guess _I'll _be taking the anesthetics, then. You better warn me before you decide to go off and cut yourself." She warned, causing Hidan to snort. She acted as if she was his _mother_.

"Whatever, bitch." He said, carelessly, before he stepped out of the bathroom, allowing Sakura some privacy.

Once the door was fully closed, Sakura changed into her clothes, sighing deeply. Her stomach still ached, and she was pretty pissed off at Hidan's carelessness. Once she was fully clothed, she decided to sit down on the floor. She craned her neck back until her head touched the edge of the sink.

"What have I gotten myself into?"

There was a pause where Sakura began to reflect, but tapping was heard on the door that had nearly been ripped off its hinges only moments before.

"Uh, who the fuck are you talking to?... Well, I'm going to start my ritual, soon. You better prepare yourself, princess. Hurry the fuck up in there." Hidan announced as soon as his tapping ceased.

Sakura groaned, embarrassed. Now he thought she was insane! With a grunt, Sakura pulled herself up and started searching for the anesthetics.

Mentally sighing, she prepared herself for the long hours of numbness she was about to endure.

* * *

"I call the bed." Sakura demanded, heading into the washroom to clean herself off before she went to bed.

"It's big enough for the both of us, bitch. Didn't your parents teach you how to fucking share?" Hidan sneered, glaring at the closed bathroom door.

"You're a bloody mess, Hidan! Even if I didn't mind sleeping next to you, you'd get the sheets all bloodied up." Sakura called out from inside the washroom.

"Why do you have to be such a goddamn pussy about it? You're a fucking medic for Jashin's sake! Can't you handle a little blood?" Hidan asked, pointedly.

"I didn't say I couldn't handle it," There was a pause, and running water could be heard. "I faid foo would get fa bed dirty!"

"Fuck! Fine, I'll take a damn shower, okay? You nagging wretch." Hidan muttered, yanking the door open and stepping into the bathroom.

"Wha fa hell, Hidan?" Sakura exclaimed with a toothbrush sticking out of her mouth. In a last attempt at modesty, Sakura grabbed the nearest towel and wrapped it around herself, tightly. She spat out the foam in her mouth and turned to glare at Hidan.

"You don't just barge in like that, you idiot!"

Hidan took a moment to compose himself. He had to admit, she was one fine female specimen.

"Why didn't you lock the damn door then, you dumb fuck?" He retorted, glaring right back at her.

"Because you busted the lock earlier!" Sakura stated, and to prove her point she twisted the door knob, which was completely ineffective. It looked as if it would fall off any second.

"Whatever." He grunted, and started stripping down.

"What are you doing?!" Sakura screeched.

"Calm the fuck down! Jashin, what does it fucking look like I'm doing?" He countered, as he proceeded to take the last of his clothes off. Sakura immediately ran out of the room with her faced flushed red. Hidan's angry expression quickly changed into an amused smirk as she slammed the broken door behind her.

Sakura, both infuriated and embarrassed, sat down on the bed with a huff. Hidan was impossible to deal with! She pouted as she glanced down at the blood-covered floor.

She was _not_ going to be cleaning up that mess.

She found herself wandering towards the window, where she could see most of the village from the room. It looked quite familiar, actually, and if she wasn't mistaken, she had probably passed through a few times.

Inwardly groaning, she wondered how to get out of this mess. Hidan was easily recognizable with his white hair and violet eyes, and even if he was believed to be killed... Sakura's frown deepened. She would have to get him to Tsunade-sama as fast as possible, considering she couldn't risk getting Hidan hurt, now that her anesthetic supply had vastly decreased. The amount of pain Ino, Shikamaru, or Chouji would inflict towards him wouldn't even compare to Hidan's self-sacrificing rituals.

Sakura grabbed her pack and looked for some clean clothes to sleep in, put them on, and practically jumped into the soft, fluffy covers. She smiled as she cuddled into the sheets. She definitely deserved this after such a torturous day.

Just as she was drifting off, Hidan came out of the washroom with a towel around his waist. Taking it off and drying his hair, he glanced down at the bed and smirked. His latest conversion project, Sakura Haruno, appeared to be lying asleep peacefully. Throwing the towel aside, he slowly climbed into bed, attempting to prevent Sakura from waking.

Despite her exhaustion, Sakura was still conscious as she felt the bed shift, but she decided to ignore it. She even ignored the fact that he was nearly right up against her, and as soon as she was positive he wouldn't try anything funny, she fell soundly asleep. After all, if he wanted her dead, or anything else from her, he would have taken it from her a long time ago.

The next morning, she found herself in a tangled mess of limbs, which she had somewhat expected. She knew she moved around in her sleep, but she trusted Hidan to keep his hands to himself. Despite his perverted jokes, he really didn't seem like the type of guy who'd actually take advantage of her.

As she untangled herself from him, she accidentally brushed her bare leg against-

Hesitantly, she peered underneath the sheets and once seeing his naked body from head to toe, promptly jumped out of the bed.

"What the _hell_, Hidan?!" She screeched, instantly waking him up.

"What the fuck are you screaming for so early in the goddamn morning, bitch?" He yelled back, albeit somewhat groggily.

"You're- You're-" She sputtered, indignantly. "You're _naked_!"

He gave her a look that seemed to question her sanity.

"So? I always sleep naked."

"Y-you- You-"

Hidan rolled his eyes at her, annoyed. She was freaking out over absolutely nothing! He gave her an impatient glare, waiting for the insult that was bound to come rolling out of that cute mouth of hers.

"You- you man whore!"

He stared at her blankly for a moment, and promptly started laughing.

"Man whore?" He repeated, with an incredulous tone. "Fuck, Sakura, that's the best you could come up with? Jashin, you are one hopeless motherfucker."

"Shut up." Sakura retorted, her blush darkening as a whole new wave of embarrassment washed over her. Hidan simply continued chuckling and headed to the bathroom to put on some clothes.

When he returned, he found Sakura already dressed and ready to go.

"I want to start heading for Konoha, _now_." She stated, stubbornly. A small hint of pink was visible on her cheeks, most likely from their previous 'conversation'. Hidan shrugged- it didn't really matter where the hell she wanted to go, as long as she eventually converted. Once they checked out of the hotel, the two were on their way to Sakura's home village.

"You know, they're going to eventually get you to release your jutsu on me, and then they'll torture you for information." Sakura started, glaring up at Hidan with her arms crossed in front of her chest.

"Since when did you fucking care?" Hidan teased, thoroughly enjoying the incredulous expression her face.

"I don't! I'm just saying it would do us all a favor if you'd just release your-"

"I fucking told you," He stopped walking and grabbed her shoulders, turning to her to face him. "I'm not going to release the damn jutsu until you've converted to Jashinism."

In most circumstances, anybody who treated her as roughly as he had done would have received a beating immediately. However, Hidan's seriousness as he declared his intentions stunned her into speechlessness.

He was always teasing and swearing and was just so damn annoying whenever she interacted with him, but it was evident, through the way he had become so serious, that he was extremely passionate about his religion.

In a way, it was devastatingly similar to her one-sided feelings towards Sasuke. She practically worshiped the very ground he walked on, despite his cruelty towards her. Her loyalty to him, even at present, was rivaled only by Naruto.

She did not convince herself that she still loved Sasuke, but she refused to let him- her teammate, her_ friend_- completely walk out of her life for good. At least, not without a fight.

Composing herself quickly, Sakura pulled herself out of his grip and narrowed her eyes at him defiantly.

"Well, I guess you're going to be stuck with me for a while, since I'm never going to-"

A piercing pain shot through her as a kunai embedded itself into Hidan's shoulder.

"Fuck!" Hidan cursed, ripping out the kunai and hurtling it back towards the source. Sakura bit her lips, preventing her from crying out from the excruciating pain. How anybody ever get used to this?

"We caught up to you pretty fast." A shinobi appeared in a tree about twenty feet away, and Sakura's eyebrows furrowed as she recognized the man to be one of the man she had left in the forest unconscious only a day before. Silently, she inwardly scolded herself at being careless in covering up her tracks.

"I see you have a friend with you- unfortunately, pinky, that won't matter." He exclaimed, smirking down at her with the same overconfidence that led to his previous defeat.

"Fucking hell!" Hidan exclaimed, exasperatedly. Threateningly, he pointed his scythe to the man. "What the_ fuck_ do want?"

"The girl. Hand over the girl." He demanded, watching as Sakura stood up with a grimace.

"_Fuck_ no." Hidan refused, lunging towards him. As he slashed at the man, the decapitated shinobi disappeared, leaving a log in his place.

"Dammit, the fucker got away." Hidan swore, but as he turned around to walk back to Sakura, a barrage of weapons came shooting at him in all directions. Sakura, who was out of range, could only watch in horror as Hidan tried dodging the weapons, even using his scythe to deflect a few.

Despite his speed, Hidan was not fast enough to counter each individual weapon. Shuriken, kunai, and other weapons thrown at such a close range started lodging themselves deep within his legs, his shoulders, his back-

Sakura couldn't keep it in, anymore. An agonized scream erupted from her throat as Hidan's jutsu transferred the pain into her.

"Shit!" Hidan yelled, watching as Sakura collapsed on her knees, hugging herself. A few men started closing in on her, and he knew he really shouldn't have cared, but the only thing that ran through his mind was that Sakura could actually _die._

His eyes widened as this realization finally hit him. He was _worried_ about her. Unwilling to accept this, Hidan tried justifying himself.

Jashin had requested her joining their religion- so it was only to be expected that he would worry about her! She was important, and would be so very useful to Jashin-sama when she became immortal, just like him.

Knowing he couldn't reach her in time, he placed his hands together in a seal and muttered a few words, effectively cutting off the jutsu he had afflicted on her.

Sakura felt the pain dissipate immediately, but before she could react, a swift kick at the back of her head sent her into unconsciousness. Enraged, Hidan ran forward, but in his distracted state, he unknowingly allowed a kunai to embed itself at the back of his skull.

He was immortal, but not undefeatable- and with his last conscious moments, he pulled the kunai out.

* * *

End of chapter! TBC.

I just realized something. If Orochimaru was so concerned with being immortal, why didn't he become a Jashinist like Hidan? I mean, he had tons of people to kill, locked up in those jail cells. Plenty of sacrifices there. So why not? S:

Please review!


	2. Ako?

Disclaimer: All characters in Naruto belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

Title: Obsessive  
Summary: "It's a similar jutsu to the one I usually use. You know, the one where my skin changes color and I look totally _bad ass_? You must've heard about it before. It's like that, except you only feel the _pain_." Hidan x Sakura twoshot.  
Time-Period: Not really sure. I'm not caught up with the manga, and a lot of characters and things have already been killed of... Well, I'm sure it will be easy to figure out. Time-period isn't that big of a deal here, anyways.

For: SpeedDemon315's contest.  
Pairing: Hidan x Sakura  
Theme: Ardor - intense devotion, eagerness, or enthusiasm; zeal

Eheh, it was originally going to be a oneshot, but the fic got a little too long. I hope you enjoy the last chapter!

* * *

Hidan awoke to the incessant chirping of birds, the blindingly bright sun, and a disgusting, _slimy_, tongue darting out to lick the side of his face. Needless to say, he was not in a good mood.

"What the _fuck_?"

The back of his head, which was mostly healed, was throbbing dully with pain. When the memories of what had recently occurred returned, he clenched his fists.

"_Shit_!" He yelled, slamming his fist on the ground. "Sakura!"

He wiped any dirt from his face and looked around, only to find the clearing empty. Whatever animal that had been licking his face had wisely left him to his own thoughts. His strength had returned, but his body was still in pain. It looked as if the rogue-nins simply abandoned him, not knowing that he would be healed in a matter of time. He brought his hand to the back of his head and felt the dried blood.

As he stood up, he contemplated on whether or not to follow after Sakura. She finally got what she had been nagging him for the past couple of days- freedom from his jutsu- and good riddance, too! She wasn't the only person tied down to the damn technique. He had been forced to refrain from getting too badly hurt, which meant less rituals and more drawbacks when fighting. And as for converting her, Hidan could always find a few more sacrifices and do a couple more rituals in repentance.

A wave of guilt consumed him as he started walking back the way he- _they_- had come. He took a couple more steps in the direction before he finally admitted to himself that he could not just leave her. Despite how much of a bitch the woman was, she really did grow on him. Turning around, he let his eyes wander around the clearing, noticing instantly the many things the rogue nins did not bother to hide.

The trail, although subtle for civilians, was obvious in the eyes of a shinobi, from poorly-hidden footprints to broken twigs and branches. As he followed along, however, he noticed many startling differences. A few trees had been torn in half, and there were a few crater-shaped dents in the dirt and boulders he passed by. It looked as if Sakura had awoken and was struggling fiercely. A grin found its way to Hidan's face as he felt some pride in the kunoichi.

Jashin had definitely chosen well.

Even in her obviously weakened state, as well as the fact that she was so grossly outnumbered, Sakura was still fighting strong.

The trail eventually became more inconspicuous, and Hidan suspected that they had finally managed to either knock her out, or fully detain her. It must have taken a while, and once Sakura awoke again... His grin widened at the thought, but faltered when he considered how many days he had been unconscious for. According to the trail, he was about three to five days behind.

Their large numbers would slow them down considerably, as well as Sakura's struggling. It helped that he was a fast runner, but even so, it would take many hours, or even an entire day, to fully catch up with them. Hopefully they wouldn't do anything too bad-

Jashin, he was becoming a softie! Who cared what happened to her? As long as she was still _alive_. Mentally slapping himself, Hidan quickened his pace, despite the protests his legs made. He needed to get to Sakura as quickly as possible- _to convert her to Jashinism_, he told himself. Once he found her and determined her safety, he would rest and allow time to soothe his aching muscles.

Hours passed, and Hidan grew increasingly impatient. The trail was leading deeper and deeper into forest, and he still hadn't caught up with them. Signs of Sakura struggling were nowhere to be found, and despite what he tried convincing himself, Hidan was also growing more and more worried. She may have been able to defeat the group once, but she had the element of surprise, and their underestimation on her side. Now, however, her abilities couldn't make up for the large number of jounin-level rogues.

Strangely enough, Hidan found that his surroundings seemed nearly identical. He could have sworn he had passed by the very same tree branch at least four times in the past couple of hours. Grabbing a kunai, he slashed an 'X' on the tree trunk and proceeded to follow the trail with an increased speed. In about twenty minutes, he estimated, he reached the branch he had cut an 'X' into.

"Dammit." He swore, clenching his fists. He had been wasting time simply going around in circles!

"Kai!" He released the genjutsu, and a few trees diminished in his view. Replacing them were two wooden poles and an opening that lead underground. It was hidden among the foliage, and the genjutsu, which had been so insignificant, was nearly undetectable as it changed the appearance of only two poles and the small entrance. The surroundings had conveniently allowed the user to cast a weak genjutsu.

Wasting no time, Hidan headed in, brows furrowed in frustration as he heard the nins laughing from their victory. They wouldn't be laughing in the near future.

"Exactly what was in the syringe? When will she wake up, dammit!"

Hidan paused for a moment, staying in the shadows. He peeked around the corner and saw that Sakura hung from the wall, a rope tied both her wrists together. Dirt was caked all over her clothes and face, and her hair was mussed.

If they had been traveling together still, he would have laughed and told her she looked like shit, but they _weren't_ traveling together, and he wasn't in a laughing mood, either. Hidan pulled back, and listened to the men conversing.

"Some anesthetics I stole in Grass. An entire dose could knock out a beast."

"How much did you inject into her?"

"Half a dose. Any more and it would have killed her, and despite how satisfying that would be for me, I'm sure everybody else would want a piece of her after humiliating us like that."

"Fucking bitch could sure pack a punch."

"Hey, she's waking up."

"What? It's barely been a week! She should be unconscious for at least two more days!"

Hidan stiffened, the temptation to turn the corner and simply jump into action was great, but he knew that with Sakura in such a vulnerable position, he would have to think this one through. Cursing under his breath, he tried to formulate a plan.

His mind was blank- when had he ever needed a _plan_? He was immortal, dammit! He rushed into things all the time and although he got hurt, it wouldn't matter. Kakuzu was the one who usually planned things out. That man had everything down to the last detail- well, _digit_ was more like it.

And so Hidan waited, unsure and hesitant, and all the while trying to find the right moment to lunge.

"H-Hidan?"

He froze. How had she seen him? And why would she give him away like that? The stupid woman was probably so delirious that-

"Sorry pinkie, but your boyfriend isn't here to save you."

"You're going to wish you never messed with us, bitch."

There were a couple more angry outbursts, but somebody cleared his throat and silenced the rest of the rogues. Hidan figured it was their leader, the one who would be responsible for Sakura's death.

"She could be a great asset to us." A loud, booming voice exclaimed. Hidan could imagine him walking around Sakura, examining her like something bought in the market. He could imagine Sakura glaring at the man, eyes tearing him apart, limb by limb. She would be livid- he knew she was an avid feminist, if the glare she directed him the first day they met meant anything. He was only checking her out- what was so offending about that?

There was a murmur of displeasure.

"She gave us such a hard time!"

"She humiliated us! _Kill_ her!"

And almost immediately, another round of shouting began. Hidan stopped himself from sighing in agitation. He was fighting, not with an organization of jounin-level nins, but an angry mob of egotistical men whose pride had been severely wounded.

"I'd never join this pathetic lot of- of _boys_ who call themselves ninja." Sakura announced, her voice harsh. Hidan risked a peek, and noticed that although her voice sounded strong and confident, she looked utterly exhausted and weak.

"Us? Pathetic? You're the one who's completely helpless, girlie."

There was a short pause, and her head lolled to the side tiredly, "I'm not the one completely outnumbered. It took your entire team to restrain me- and I nearly escaped more than once, too!"

"That does not matter. If you will not join our organization, you will die tonight."

There was a moment of silence, broken only by few who muttered out words of agreement.

"Tell me, then... What happened to Hidan?" Her voice held a worried tone to it, and if he was correct, she sounded almost guilty as well.

"He's _dead_. We killed him with a kunai to the base of his skull."

Hidan, who was surprised at Sakura's concern for him- as well as the fact that he was _still_ undetected- continued to watch, a mere twelve feet away from the large group.

"Impossible." Sakura murmured, disbelievingly. Hidan never really explained to her how his immortality worked. She only knew that he had been able to reattach his limbs after being blown apart, but she had no idea about anything concerning the damage done to his head.

Dread and hopelessness filled her being as the man's words sunk in. His death really could have been possible.

"He couldn't be... No- he's not- you're_ lying_! Tell me, _what happened to him_!" She started out with a whisper, but by the end of her exclamation, she was yelling and near hysterics. It was a miracle her voice hadn't cracked once.

Hidan could tell she wasn't in a stable state of mind. Her entire body was limp and her pupils were both dilated and unfocused. She didn't even have the strength to lift her head properly!

"Sorry honey, but your boyfriend is dead. You'll see him soon enough."

"_Dammit_..." Sakura muttered, allowing her head to fall forward limply. "_... _It's_... My fault_."

"What was that, pinkie?"

It seemed Sakura was completely lost as she started to mutter nonsense. Her frail-looking body quivered as the jumbled words left her lips. The men, confused and angry still, decided to simply watch as she rambled on.

"He shouldn't have died- I wasn't strong enough to protect- not myself, not Sasuke, not Hidan. Why couldn't I- I'm still a failure- still weak and tired and helpless and _I tried so damn hard_. It's not fair, not fair, not fair..."

Tears fell in small streams down her cheeks and Hidan watched, dumbfounded, as she continued to mutter insecurities that were not true.

"Shut up! You there," He gestured to one of his cronies, "get rid of her. She's of no use to us, now. Insane bitch keeps blubbering."

Snapped out of his reverie, Hidan decided it was his cue to attack, and lunged for the nearest nins, swinging his scythe. Using the element of surprise, he managed to take out half in just a few, quick strokes. Their bodies fell to the ground with crippling wounds. He had been running his chakra through the scythe, a trick he picked up over his many years. A thin layer of chakra would coat the ends of the blade. Directly hitting his targets would not be necessary- he only needed to get the blade within three inches of their skin to strike.

He wasn't in the Akatsuki for nothing.

"You again? How are you even alive? I saw you fall with the kunai sticking out of your-"

The man was silenced as Hidan swiped at him. Blood splattered across Hidan's face as the rogue fell lifelessly to the ground. Licking his lips, Hidan pulled his scythe back and glared challengingly at the rest of the men who were staring back at him with shock written across their visages.

"Too much talk." Hidan stated with a smug smirk, he turned to the ringleader who stood taller and tougher-looking than the rest. His fists were clenched and his eyes were narrowed. He was obviously livid, and in a fit of rage, roared an order for the men to kill Hidan immediately.

Hidan merely laughed as they charged at him. Hearing the battle cries and feeling their auras of overconfidence left him feeling more exhilarated than ever. He couldn't remember the last time he had been able to enjoy a sacrificing spree. He toyed with the rogues, dodging punches thrown at him, stepping by the numerous weapons thrown hastily towards him. Their moves were slow, and their attacks were sloppy. It seemed they relied heavily on their number instead of their level of skill.

Hidan felt confident- he knew it was an easy match for him, now that their numbers had dwindled to a mere six or seven.

He was having too much fun to notice the leader stalk over to Sakura's delirious, rambling self, knock her unconscious, and start to cut the ropes that bound her. He was almost finished cutting through the thickly wound threads when Hidan finally realized.

Hurriedly, he finished off the rest of the men and lunged towards Sakura's current captor, but stopped barely four feet away when the man unsheathed his katana and held it against Sakura's throat.

He knew that he was acting irrational. He was only in this situation because of his impulsive tendencies, after all. He didn't necessarily need to save Sakura from her impending death. He knew it was going to happen someday, whether she was an old, retired woman, or even the next time she went on a mission. He knew she wasn't immortal like him.

What he didn't know was why that thought bugged him. He didn't understand the strange and so unusually strong impulsive feeling to take her out of harms way. It was possible, he thought, that maybe the urges were some sort of side-effect from the jutsu, as unlikely as it was. It was the only reason he could come up with- the only one that made sense, anyways._  
_

"Let her go." Hidan demanded, narrowing his eyes at the leader.

"No." An immediate refusal was given. What did Hidan expect? That he cooperate and release her?

Hidan could only watch as the man glanced around the room. Nin were scattered on the floor, some dead, some still alive. A young man, no more than twenty four, lay on the ground, moaning. His arm and chest displayed a large gash where Hidan had slashed with his scythe. Blood flowed from the fresh wound, spilling onto the ground and forming a small puddle around the dying man.

"My men... Defeated..."

With his pride wounded, and his rage at an all new high, the leader let out a cry before pressing the blade into Sakura's neck.

Before the blade could do too much damage, Hidan had already killed the man with a kunai thrown straight to his head. Fortunately for him, he had not been wearing a forehead protector, making his skull an easy target. Picking Sakura up off the floor, he started sprinting towards what he believed was the direction of Konoha. He had no experience in any medical jutsu, and Sakura was bleeding _heavily_.

"It hurts..."

Hidan glanced down for a quick second, and took note of her pale, fragile features. She was unhealthily skinny, and her eyes had a strange glaze. It wasn't as if she was really present in her conscious mind. He could tell that her chakra levels were dangerously low, and now that he was able to inspect her more closely, he noticed multiple wounds scattered around her body. His concern for her rose, and his legs acted accordingly, moving faster and swifter.

"Shut up. Talking will make it worse, dumbass. You're the medic, you should know this." Hidan ordered, harshly.

"Hidan... You came?" She croaked, before coughing heavily. Blood dripped from the side of her mouth, but she was smiling.

"Shut the fuck up, Sakura." Hidan replied.

"Okeydokey, artichokey." Delirious. Definitely delirious. She soon fell back into unconsciousness, and Hidan had a feeling she probably wouldn't remember their short conversation, or anything that had occurred recently.

In what he believed was the longest four hours of his life, Hidan finally reached the gates of Konoha. If he was correct, it was around five a.m. in the morning. Panting heavily and chakra reserves nearly half empty due to his enhanced running, Hidan stepped through the wide gates of Leaf.

"Sakura!" Kotetsu exclaimed, running up to them. A quick glance at his surroundings told Hidan that the approaching ninja was completely alone guarding the gates. Looking up at Hidan with suspicion clearly written across his face, he asked, "Who are you supposed to be?

"It doesn't fucking matter who I am. Take me to the hospital, _now_."

Kotetsu shook his head, "I can't allow you to pass through until I have-"

He didn't have a chance to finish because he was knocked out cold, lying on the ground. Hidan growled in frustration as he sprinted ahead, hoping he would somehow come across the damn hospital.

"Sakura-chan!" A worried voice exclaimed.

"Fucking hell." Hidan cursed, enhancing his legs with chakra once again in hopes of outrunning whoever recognized the woman in his arms. It was of no use as a blond boy came running up to him. Hidan clenched his teeth as he wondered exactly why the man was up so damn early in the morning.

"Who are you, and where the hell are you going with her?" When he saw what condition his friend was in, he gasped. Stricken with both horror and shock, Naruto nearly tripped over himself as he continued to keep up with the man's pace.

Although the guy looked mean, he was helping Sakura, and Naruto figured he couldn't have been the culprit that wounded his best friend. Even so, he didn't _fully_ trust him. Something about this guy seemed dangerous.

Naruto's eyes narrowed as irises transformed from a bright blue to a dangerous red. Naruto demanded, "What happened to her?"

"Show me where the damn hospital is." Hidan replied, ignoring his question. Naruto merely nodded, and Hidan watched as the boy, whose features looked more fox-like, ran ahead, leading him towards Konoha's hospital. He thanked Jashin, grateful for coming across a nin who had at least an ounce of common sense.

Silence reigned as the two ran in full speed towards the hospital. They could not waste any more time- not with Sakura's life on the line. Once they reached the building, a few medics who happened to spot them quickly escorted them into an emergency room. After placing Sakura on one of the cots, both Hidan and Naruto were ordered to wait outside of the room as they worked.

"You better start answering my questions." Naruto suddenly declared, his arms folded over his chest. His once fiery red eyes had returned to their normal shade of blue, showing that he had calmed down considerably with the knowledge that Sakura was in safe hands.

"Why the _fuck_ should I do that?" Hidan retorted, glaring at Naruto. He was tired, frustrated, worried- and this guy had the gall to demand some answers from him! Hidan inwardly growled. The blond shit should be grateful that he had been able to reach her in time and save her sorry ass.

"Because she's my _best_ friend and I _have_ to know!" Naruto countered, glaring right back. Hidan rolled his eyes- but complied, waiting for him to ask his first question. Sakura obviously meant a lot to him, so maybe the blondie did deserve to have his questions answered.

Naruto sighed, "Sorry. I was just really worried about her, and seeing her like that..."

Naruto unclenched his fists, releasing the tension that had built up. He had been so worried about her. Sakura was a capable kunoichi- seeing her in such a critical state was rare, and he could not stand being unable to help her in her time of need. It was even worse knowing that he hadn't been there to prevent the damage, but the worst thing was not knowing if she was going to make it through or not.

"... What happened?"

There was a pause, where Hidan took the time to recollect the information and decide what to say. Revealing himself as Hidan, ex-Akatsuki, probably was not the smartest idea. He needed to approach this like Sakura would- _tactfully_. It wasn't his way of doing things, but he would try to the best of his ability. Despite how tedious it was, he wanted to see Sakura when she awoke instead of trying to escape Konoha hunter-nins.

"I met her while traveling to a village on the outskirts of Fire Country." Hidan started to explain. He made an effort to refrain from swearing. He figured he could also twist the story a little. "We happened to be going in the same direction. At one point, we parted ways. She was ambushed by some rogue ninja, and once I'd heard, I came to her aid. She was unconscious, and they were about to kill her when I reached their hideout."

Naruto nodded, taking in a deep breath. If it weren't for this kind stranger, he might have been unable to see her alive again. Grateful, Naruto locked eyes with Hidan before saying, "Thank you. I think I can speak for everybody in Konoha when I say that I'm grateful to you for helping her."

"Hm." Hidan replied, unused of such gratitude. Turning away with his arms crossed, he muttered, "Don't mention it."

Another moment of silenced was shared between the two, until the door to the operating room creaked open. Both men stood straight as one of the medics stepped out. A bead of sweat trailed down her forehead, and she wiped it away with the back of her gloved hand. Her breathing was heavy, and Hidan felt the nervousness bubble up inside of him once again. From the woman's facial expression, it didn't look like things were going so well with Sakura.

"Is she okay? What's happening in there?" Naruto demanded in a slow, cautious tone. The medic refused to make eye contact with either Hidan or Naruto, instead choosing to look down at the floor as she shook her head. There was a small pause before Naruto rushed into the room, pushing the medic to the side. She didn't seem to mind, and watched with sad eyes as the blond leaned over the girl.

"Too much blood was lost, and her chakra reserves were completely depleted. Her wounds are too deep, and the substance she was injected with is toxic to humans... I'm sorry, but we have tried everything we could. There is nothing else we can do."

Naruto reached over her face, his hand hovering just over Sakura's cheek. When his fingers brushed against her cold, pale skin, he instantly drew his arm back as if he'd been burned.

"Can't you save her?" Naruto yelled, turning to the medics. "There _has_ to be something else you can do! Anything!"

Hidan had to take a moment for the information to really sink in. His brows furrowed at the unfortunate news. Sakura was not going to make it, was going to die. She was going to die like everybody he cared about did. His heart clenched painfully at the thought- he may pretend that he did not care about anyone other than himself, but it was his way of coping with the unceasing losses. It was the price to pay when you were immortal.

He would rather endure massive amounts of physical pain than to feel constantly abandoned by those whose bonds have been severed by death. It was why he didn't mind making a bond with Kakuzu. It may not have seemed like it, but they were friends. With Kakuzu's many hearts, and his ability to continuously add more, Hidan considered him to be immortal as well, thus enabling him to take the risks of befriending him.

"Just don't let her die, dammit!" Naruto was near hysterics as he desperately pleaded the medics to save Sakura. "Call in Baa-chan, she'll know what to do!"

But Kakuzu had died, just like the others.

"Fuck! Don't leave me, Sakura. Don't you fucking dare!" Naruto was crying now, holding Sakura to his chest. Her body lay limply in his arms- cold, pale, and more frail than he had ever seen her before. Hidan shut his eyes for a moment. Lying there was _not_ the Sakura he'd met.

The Sakura he had gotten to know was an incredible fighter. She was strong-willed, and passionate in everything she believed in. Her loyalty to her village was as intense as his own loyalty towards Jashin. Hidan respected her, and would go as far as saying that he _liked_ her, as well.

"Stay with me, _please_." Naruto croaked- by now, the remaining medics have left the room, allowing them privacy. "You can't go... Not yet..."

And now she was going to die. Just like Kakuzu, like everybody else he ever gave a damn about had.

Hidan couldn't allow that. He was sick and tired of having death wrench his friends from his grasp. He was tired of having to cut and stab and slice himself open in order to numb the emotional pain he had to deal with every time someone he gave a rat's ass about passed away. He was tired of pushing everyone away in order to save himself from their inevitable deaths and the heartache that came with it.

"Kami, _don't_ let her die." Naruto sobbed, "I didn't even get a chance to say good bye, dammit!"

He was too selfish to give Sakura the freedom that comes with dying.

"Move aside." Hidan demanded, standing before Sakura and Naruto. There was only one way, he knew, that would save her, now.

"What are you going to do to her?" Naruto snarled, tightening his hold around her in a protective manner.

"I'm going to make sure this bitch lives." Hidan replied, all thoughts of abstaining from swearing gone. "Place her on the ground."

"I don't trus-"

"It's the only chance I- _she_ has." Hidan snapped back, sounding almost desperate. At his tone, Naruto finally allowed himself to relax slightly.

He waited for Naruto to gently place Sakura on the ground. When he reluctantly backed away, Hidan bit the tips of his fingers, drawing out blood. Around her body, he drew the many symbols needed for the technique he was about to perform. As soon as he finished, he stepped back to view his work. The resulting shape was a circle with a triangle in the center- the symbol for jashin.

He was going to convert her, resulting in her immortality, resulting in her _survival_.

The jutsu required an immense amount of chakra, and was usually done with a group of at least five people to lessen the chakra strain. Because the subject had not expressed consent or any willingness whatsoever, it would require even more energy than usual. If she had been compliant, Hidan would have been able to do perform the technique on his own, had he been at full health.

He knew his reserves were running low, and despite how big they originally were, there was a high possibility he wouldn't be able to make it. Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, Hidan placed his hands atop of Sakura's stomach. He needed another source of chakra. Swallowing his pride, he turned to Naruto with an almost pained expression, "I'm going to need a shitload of chakra for this."

The request was clear, and Naruto nodded dutifully. He would do whatever it took to save Sakura. As soon as Naruto set his hands on top of his, Hidan started chanting the words needed for the conversion jutsu. The symbols simultaneously started to glow an eery white before coming together underneath his hands. Naruto winced as enormous amounts of chakra were forced from his very being.

Hidan finished the jutsu, and Naruto watched in amazement as the symbol of Jashin materialized around her navel, similar to the seals around his. Hidan, breathing heavily, pressed his fingers to her neck to check her pulse. It was weak, but still there, thankfully. Naruto wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead, and sighed in utter relief.

"She's okay, now, right?" He inquired, lifting Sakura in a semi-prone position. Hidan merely nodded, and turned to Sakura. When she found out about what he did, she would be enraged- but he would rather have her angry at him than dead. She would get over it, eventually. He knew she wasn't the type of person to hold a grudge.

"She won't wake up for another day or so." Hidan stated, watching as her chest rose and fell with each breath she took. Naruto lifted her back into her cot and tucked her underneath a blanket. The two men simply watched her as she lay asleep, their breathing heavy and their shirts soaked with sweat.

Naruto let out a sigh of relief- Sakura would remain alive! He wouldn't have to hold a funeral for her, wouldn't have to stand in front of a large crowd and tell them just how much he appreciated her,- not that he didn't express it enough, already- wouldn't have to walk up to her open casket and place a flower on her corpse- he was just _so_ relieved that she would be fine.

"_Fuck_." Hidan swore, brushing away some blood-soaked hair that had fallen in front of her face. With a grimace, he muttered, "You are more fucking trouble than you're worth."

It wasn't very long until Tsunade came barging in. Her eyes were wide, and her breathing was erratic as she demanded, "What the hell happened here?"

Hidan cursed under her breath. He considered himself to have a decent level of cleverness, but talking his way out of this was going to be a tough one, especially since he was dealing with Konoha's _Hokage_. Luckily for him, Naruto stepped up and explained everything, from what Hidan had told him earlier, up until now. Tsunade still seemed suspicious, however, and warily stood beside Sakura's side as she examined her.

When the Godaime visibly relaxed, Hidan rolled his eyes- of _course_ his jutsu would work! Tsunade turned to Hidan with an expression of disdain. He glared back in response.

"Why was our guard unconscious?"

"The little shit wouldn't let me pass, and Sakura was fucking dying." Hidan replied, back to his disrespectful self. Tsunade narrowed her eyes at the blatant display of rudeness. She still felt distrusting. There was something off about him- she could already tell he was dangerous, but that wasn't the point. Hadn't she seen him somewhere? His necklace and scythe seemed so familiar...

"What is your name, boy?" Tsunade growled, crossing her arms over her chest. She knew he couldn't be as evil as he seemed if Sakura had befriended him, and he had even allowed the guard to live. The fact he had gone through so much trouble to save her apprentice was something to consider, as well. The man was obviously exhausted, and if he didn't see to some proper rest, problems in health would arise.

Hidan wondered if it would be better to tell the truth, or make up a name. They still didn't recognize him, but he knew they would find out eventually... Being honest about it now could create less suspicion in the future when they realized he was telling the truth. Not only that, but Sakura would probably blab everything away when she awoke.

Stupid bitch probably wouldn't be able to keep her mouth shut for a second.

"Hidan." His reply was short and straight to the point.

"Hey, I've heard of that name, before." Naruto claimed, thoughtfully. There was a short period of quiet before he spoke up again, "Shikamaru buried him alive, or something like that. It was a long while back, though. And now that I remember- from how they described him, of course- he looked a lot like-"

"Are you stupid?" Tsunade interrupted, causing Naruto to huff in indignation. "It _is_ him, idiot."

Hidan stood up abruptly at the tone of her voice. He was willing to continue fighting, dammit! He had made it this far, had put in so much energy- there was no way he would back down, now. His body now tense, he expected the two to come at him, and although he had absolutely no chance of winning, his pride would not allow him to simply run away from a battle. However, neither Naruto nor Tsunade made any move to attack him.

Sakura had stirred slightly in her sleep, efficiently distracting Naruto, while Tsunade simply stared at him in contemplation. Hidan remained stiff, wary of her still. He had heard so much about the woman, of the Godaime Hokage. She was one of the most powerful medic-nin, and skilled in many areas of combat. She was known to be an excellent kunoichi, and famous for her super strength and her eternally youthful appearance- as well as her drinking habits and horrible gambling abilities.

"You will have to be interrogated, later." Tsunade said in a firm, confident manner. She knew how weak the man was- it would take little effort to overcome him. She had many questions to ask, and was curious about Sakura's side of the story. It was obvious not everything was explained. There were too many large gaps in Naruto's explanation that she wanted to know more about. With a slight nod, she added, gratefully, "Thank you for saving my apprentice."

Hidan's eyes widened slightly in surprise. Apprentice? Sakura was the _Hokage's_ apprentice?

... That explained a lot.

He knew Sakura was an accomplished fighter, but he had no idea she was training under one of the most prominent kunoichi. Knowing this tidbit of information assured him of her potential, and he felt less regretful for forcefully converting Sakura into Jashinism now that he knew she would most likely be able to handle it. However, the fact that he had no idea of this troubled him. He barely knew anything about the woman, he realized.

He'd only known her for a couple of weeks, give or take, yet she had struck something in him so hard that he had gone out of his way to save her- and he never acted out so selflessly, before. He was no hero, so why should he even bother pretending? He nodded weakly in response to the Hokage's statement, but stared warily as she approached him.

"Sit down, boy. You look as if you're going to fall over any second now." Tsunade ordered, placing a hand on his shoulder and shoving him down on the chair. Hidan wordlessly complied as the little energy he contained, drained away. He really _was_ exhausted. And now that the Hokage suggested it, all he really wanted to do at the moment was just lie down and drift off...

* * *

When Hidan awoke, he was lying in a cot with the taste of sleep still thick in his mouth. His limbs felt heavy, but he felt much better than before he passed out. Sitting up, he observed the room, noticing that it was empty. Just outside the door, he felt two presences. So he was being guarded, eh?

"He's awake, go inform the Hokage." One of the guards suddenly declared. Hidan raised a brow in slight confusion. He hadn't made enough noise to be heard from behind the doors, and his chakra reserves were still low enough to be considered unconsious.

"Of course! Let youth fill my being and allow me to run as-"

"Just _go_." The man hissed, obviously annoyed. As soon as the second presence disappeared from detection- there was something strange about the man's chakra signature, something he couldn't quite figure out- the other opened the door and stepped in. His long, brown hair was tied loosely in the back, and his strange white eyes scrutinized him.

Jashin! Konoha was filled with freaks.

There was Itachi, who he shouldn't have listed because he was on a completely whole different level of _freak_, his revenge-obsessed brother, Sakura with her uncommonly pink hair, Kyuubi's vessel, the guard who had a weird chakra signature and started babbling about youth, and now this white-eyed guy that was somehow able to sense his consciousness from behind closed doors.

"You are to remain here while waiting the Hokage's arrival." The guard stated, stiffly. Hidan fought the urge to roll his eyes- one of those strict, formal men. He could already guess how the man behaved on a regular basis, if he was correct in his assumption that this guard was any similar to Itachi. The man was always silent and so unnaturally stoic- it was as if he contained no emotions, whatsoever.

Hidan nodded his head in acknowledgment and asked, "How long have I been out for?"

"Twenty-four hours."

Hidan seemed to consider that for a moment as he turned away from the guard. He was thirsty, and his stomach was considerably empty, but he wasn't feeling too desperate for some food or water. He decided he'd be able to wait. Looking up to meet his guard's gaze, he asked, "How is Sakura doing?"

Neji felt reluctant to answer. He had been ordered to guard this man and to keep his identity and capture- if it could even be called that- a secret to the rest of the villagers. It wasn't a difficult mission, especially considering even he had no idea who he was guarding. He had been told very little information, except that the man was to be detained in the room until the Hokage made an appearance, and that he had saved Sakura so he was to be treated more like a guest than like a prisoner.

"She has yet to awaken."

Hidan grunted in response, then stood up to stretch. He was about to search the room for a source of water or food when the guard gestured to a cup of water and a sandwich, left on a table at the foot of the cot. Although somewhat grateful, Hidan did not show any thanks as he chugged down the water and quickly stuffed the sandwich into his mouth.

"So," Hidan started, swallowing before he continued, "when can I leave this shit hole?"

Ignoring his rudeness, Neji replied in a polite, business-like manner, "Not until the Hokage speaks with you."

"Damn." Hidan cursed, unhappy with the appointment with the Godaime. Interrogations were so tedious. No matter how much torture he was subject to, he was always able to keep his mouth shut- why would this be any different? It's not like he had any information about the Akatsuki, either. That was probably the first topic they would discuss with him. Inwardly cursing, he muttered, "This is going to be a long day."

He sat back on the cot, tapping his fingers beside him as he waited in awkward silence. The guard stayed by the door, simply watching, analyzing him like some stupid scientist. Forget about Itachi, this guy was more like Orochimaru, with his creepy, fucked up experiments. Or Sasori, and his even _creepier _puppets.

Wow, he knew a lot of freaks.

A few minutes later, the Hokage finally arrived, dismissing both guards, telling them that she had everything under control. Standing before him with her arms crossed, she promptly started questioning him. Hidan cooperated- many of the questions were similar to the ones Sakura asked, and answering them was easy enough. Like he had predicted, he was asked questions that focused mainly on the Akatsuki. He was also questioned about how he had managed to escape Shikamaru's trap, and how long ago, among other things.

Tsunade stopped for a moment, her expression suggesting that she was contemplating something. "Hm. Your answers have been satisfactory so far, but besides the-"

The door suddenly burst open, revealing Sakura dressed in a white hospital gown. Behind her was Naruto, laughing nervously as he rubbed the back of his head. The Hokage growled, obviously displeased with her unexpected appearance.

"Naruto! I told you to keep Sakura in the room while I-"

"I tried, baa-chan! Really, I did, but she threatened me saying that she would make sure I didn't step within a two meter radius of Ichiraku's!" Naruto explained, sounding terrified at the thought. The Hokage proceeded to pinch the bridge of her nose as she demanded the two to leave immediately. Of course, neither of them listened, and Sakura defiantly marched up to him, obviously furious.

"What did you do to me, Hidan?" Sakura demanded. Hidan examined her healthy form. She was no longer a sickly pale or extremely thin, and her wounds had healed significantly.

"No 'thank you for saving my life, Hidan'?" Hidan inquired, mocking her. With a scoff, he added, "Ungrateful bitch."

Sakura was in no mood for any teasing and joking. Feeling almost defeated, she glanced over at Tsunade with an almost pleading expression. With a sigh and an off-handed warning about being careful, the Hokage left the room, taking a resisting Naruto by the ear and dragging him away. His protests, and her shouts could be heard as he was pulled down the hall. As soon as their voices died away, Sakura promptly turned to Hidan and proceeded to blow up in his face.

"I had everything under control! I would have handled everything perfectly fine on my own! You didn't need to step in, Hidan!" She grunted, frustrated, before she continued, "And now you've placed another one of your stupid techniques-"

"_Under control_?" Hidan yelled, indignant, and unable to listen to her, any longer. She could rant on about his technique, sure, but she was in no position to tell him that she was 'handling everything perfectly fine'. He had been so fucking worried, and here she was, acting all self-righteous. Angrily, he declared, "You nearly fucking died, Sakura! If I hadn't fucking stepped in-"

"I could have handled myself fine out there!" She argued, her face now red with anger.

"You were tied up, drugged out of your goddamn mind, and completely fucking vulnerable. You call that 'handling it fine'?" Hidan retorted, his fists clenched in anger. The least she could do was be a little grateful he had actually bothered to come back for her instead of leaving her to fucking _die_ like he_ should_ have.

Sakura could only stare at him, speechless. Naruto hadn't told her about _that_ part of the story. Before she had a chance to compose herself, Hidan sneered as he turned to walk away from her.

"I'm fucking done with this shit. This is the last time I ever try helping-"

"Wait," Sakura pleaded, grabbing on to his arm before he could walk away. Hidan was about to rip his arm out of her grasp, but one look at her utterly confused expression left him sighing in resignation. He did, after all, forcefully convert her into Jashinism. He owed her an explanation at least.

"They managed to fucking knock me out. When I woke up, I followed their trail and found their base. They had drugged you up with some strong anesthetic from Grass and had you tied up by the time I found you. I watched for a bit- they offered you a chance to join them, but you refused and started talking fucking nonsense, so they decided to kill you. I stepped in and got you back to Konoha and into the hospital where..."_ the medics said you wouldn't survive, so I did the only fucking thing I could to make sure you lived._

Hidan stared at her, feeling too apprehensive to continue speaking for the first time since meeting her.

"Where...?" Sakura encouraged, much calmer than she had been only a couple of minutes ago. She was listening intently, looking so curious and eager and _goddammit_, he couldn't do it.

Did he really want to tell her? Did he really want to reveal that he had developed _feelings_ for her? She already hated him- no,_ loathed_ him! And now that he really considered it, she would only hate him even more once he informed her about his technique. He might as well save himself from the humiliation and rejection. She didn't have to know that he had thrown away his pride to finally admit that yes, he_ did_ care about her.

"I took advantage of your weakened state and performed the conversion technique. You are now a full-fledged Jashinist. Immortality and fucking everything that comes with it."

It took a moment for the information to sink in. When it had, she simply lowered her head as her small body shook with rage. Hidan inwardly winced, noticing that she was _so_ angry at him that she hadn't even attempted to punch him yet. Outwardly, he wore a smirk on his lips and had his arms folded in front of his chest in an arrogant manner.

When Sakura finally came to her senses, she glared up at him, tears streaming down her face as she slapped him. Her hands weren't enhanced with chakra, but the impact was still as painful- just not in the physical sense. Hidan's eyes fell downcast, knowing fully well he deserved it, but hardened immediately when he knew it was what he needed to do.

"You bastard!" She exclaimed, clenching her fists at her sides. "I can't believe you actually- I'm so- just- just go! Leave! I _never_ want to see your face again!"

Hidan submitted to her demand and left the room with a blank expression. As soon as the door clicked shut behind him, Sakura collapsed on the ground, devastated. She would _never_ be able to lead a normal life!

Naruto abruptly barged into the room, running to Sakura's side as soon as he saw her state. He wrapped his arms around her consolingly, and allowed her to clutch on to his shirt as she continued to cry. "Sakura-chan! What happened? Did he hurt you?"

As Sakura recited her story from the moment she had the misfortune of meeting the white-haired man, Naruto would rub her back to comfort her. He would nod along and listen intently as she spilled everything that had occurred during the weeks she was out of Konoha's protective walls. She purposely left out awkward situations,- like waking up and realizing he was naked- of course, finding it unnecessary to tell him. By the time she reached the part Hidan had explained to her, Sakura had calmed down considerably.

As she retold his story, Naruto stiffened when she explained how he had taken advantage of the situation to place a jutsu on her that would convert her into his bizarre religion. What really got to him was how Hidan had supposedly 'taken advantage of Sakura'. If he remembered correctly, the guy was just as worried as he. He may not have expressed it like Naruto had, but he could tell- from the way Hidan had held her, the way he had _looked_ at her- _everything_. He was sure of it.

"Sakura-chan, listen to me for a second." Naruto stated, tilting her chin up so that he could establish proper eye contact. "I don't think he told you this, but the medics couldn't save you. You were _dying_, Sakura-chan. Whatever technique that was, it was the only thing he could do."

He paused, thinking about Sakura's account of Jashinism.

"If it really is that bad of a jutsu, then I guess he just couldn't let you go."

Knowing this information caused her to feel almost guilty- _almost_. He would never be able to take back the curse he had forced her into. She would have to live through lifetimes, watching as friends and family died. So what if she could survive a severed arm, leg, or even a head? Who cared if she could walk after being crushed by boulders or if she could breathe after drowning in an ocean?

It would never be worth it, being forced to watch as her friends grew up and formed families normally, while she could not. She could not bear watching a child and husband grow old and die without her, and she would never consider forcing immortality on them. Bonds would be made, and forcibly torn apart by death. She was a person who functioned mainly on emotions, on loyalty and bonds made through friendship and family. Knowing they would inevitably break as decades passed- it was absolutely agonizing.

Ironically, as she continued living, she would also be left behind...

Realization dawned upon Sakura.

_"... I guess he just couldn't let you go."_

* * *

Fists clenched, Hidan silently walked out of the Hokage's office. She was now satisfied with the answers given, and finding no use for him, allowed him to leave the village, warning him to remain undetected and unseen from too many villagers.

He should consider himself fortunate, she said. Hidan rolled his eyes in contempt- fortunate his _ass_.

As he stepped out of the gate, he smirked at the guard, who stood with his arms crossed and his eyes narrowed in a glare.

"Hidan!"

He turned around to find Sakura, jogging to catch up with him, but instead of waiting, he turned back around and continued walking away. He was not in the mood to hear her bitching, and he knew he wouldn't be able to stand _looking_ at her for any longer. He just wanted to leave the damn village and be done with her. He heard her footsteps come nearer and nearer, but refused to turn around until he felt her hand grab his shoulder.

"What the fuck do you want, now?" Hidan growled, wrenching his arm away. There was no turning back- he couldn't tell her the truth, now. Sakura paused, unable to speak. She hadn't thought of what she would say to him- instead, she had impulsively ran after him when she realized exactly what Hidan was trying to avoid. She wanted to thank him and hug him and ask so many questions, but she didn't know where to begin.

"I just..." She started, but stopped when she met his eyes. Awkwardly, both turned away. Softly, she inquired, "Why...?"

Hidan knew exactly what she was referring to, but he wasn't going to answer her. Why did he bother going back for her? Why did he execute the damning technique, instead of letting her die? Meanwhile, Sakura knew the answer to her question. She just wanted to hear him_ say_ it, she needed the confirmation, to know for sure.

"Figure it out on your own. I'm fucking leaving."

Sakura flinched at his tone, and watched, disappointed, as he walked away. She stood in silence as she watched him- what could she do, now? He was leaving, dammit. He had refused to give her a chance and was walking out of her life!

He may seem like he didn't give a damn about anything other than himself, but she knew there was more to him than his flippant facade. Now that she was subject to the consequences he had been facing for years, she finally understood. Despite what he believed, Sakura knew they were at least friends.

She had to say, had to do _something_!

He was walking further and further away from her.

Ten steps...

Twenty....

Thirty...

She couldn't let him leave, couldn't let him destroy another bond.

Swallowing her pride, she ran after him once again. Just as she was about to reach him, he turned around with an irritated expression on his face. Before he could speak, however, she had wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his chest, nearly knocking him down.

"Thank you, Hidan."

Hidan's eyes widened- how did she know? She wouldn't have thanked him unless she had known.

As if reading his thoughts, Sakura muttered into his shirt, "Naruto told me."

Hidan relaxed and reluctantly placed his arms around her waist, drawing her closer to him. The two stayed like that for a moment, before Sakura looked up at him with a nervous expression.

"Stay?" She pleaded, blushing. She should have thought this out, before. It probably would have been less awkward on her part. "With me."

"No." He didn't even consider the idea and had instantly rejected her request.

Embarassed, Sakura quickly transformed her humiliation into anger as she pulled away from him and demanded, "Why not?"

"Your Hokage said that there are some people who'd recognize me and try to kill me." Hidan replied, shrugging. Sakura bit her lip- she had forgotten to consider Ino, Shikamaru, or the others who were greatly affected by Asuma's death. They would definitely be unhappy with Hidan living in Konoha.

"Maybe we could change your appearance." Sakura suggested, "We could dye your hair and-"

She was silenced as Hidan lifted her chin up and and kissed her. Sakura could do nothing but widen her eyes in surprise. When they parted, Sakura was still red in the face, and sputtering madly.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that, bitch."

She couldn't speak- her heart was beating erratically, and she had an extreme case of butterflies in her stomach. She hadn't felt this way since... Well, she had never felt this way! The only time she had been so flustered was when she almost kissed Sasuke- who happened to be Naruto, that idiot- and when she had pleaded Sasuke to bring her with him, but neither times had she felt such intenseness.

"You stay in Konoha. The next time you're out on a mission, I'll find you." Hidan stated, smirking at Sakura's speechlessness.

"How?" Sakura replied, weakly. Sakura knew she respected him,- he was loyal, dedicated, and an exceptional fighter- she considered him a friend at the very least, and she was obviously attracted to him physically, but could she consider him in that way? Could she grow to love him, and live the rest of eternity with him?

"I have my ways." Hidan responded, before pulling her in for another kiss. This time, however, Sakura happily reciprocated.

Of course she could. It's not like she had much of a choice, anyways.

* * *

End of story! I hope you enjoyed reading!

_Please_ review!


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